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Finance Bill

The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right. As we have seen those rises in the barrel price—something like $2 in the past month, $10 in the past six months and $30 in the past year—we have seen a corresponding rise in the price at the pump. This issue is within the Government's control: they get the duty, but they also get a VAT windfall when the price at the pump goes up. In addition, as the barrel price rises, they get more North sea corporation tax, from the normal corporation tax and the ring-fenced regime. There are therefore windfalls for the Government from VAT, their own duty rises and North sea corporation tax, which is why the fuel duty regulator—or the Conservatives' version of a fair fuel stabiliser, or whatever some of the sensible Members on the Labour Benches called the measure—is exactly the right thing to introduce. Should the Conservatives win the next election, I hope they can be held to their promise to introduce their version of the fuel duty regulator quickly, to smooth out spikes in prices at the pump.